1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to network elements capable of providing new and enhanced broadband, information-related services to consumers. Specifically, the present invention provides the ability to receive and respond to diverse subscriber requests by transmitting information of virtually any kind. The information transmitted can include movies, video games and other entertainment programs, educational information and programs, scientific and other research-related database information, and the like, and is hereinafter referenced generically as "information" or "titles".
2. Description of the Related Art
Consumer demand for enhanced on-site entertainment and information services is on the rise. Examples of such entertainment and information services include so-called "on-demand" video, interactive video games, database research, "home-shopping" and the like. Numerous service providers are currently eager to tap this demand, and are therefore expressing interest in schemes for providing such services to consumers. The efforts currently being expended by service providers, as well as the current state of progress in this field of technology are described, e.g., in TIME Magazine, Apr. 12, 1993, at 49ff., and Newsweek, May 31, 1993, at 39ff.
In order to be economically practical and viable, a system offering the wide range of information-related services just described should preferably be able to (i) permit access to large volumes of data (i.e., to a large number of titles), (ii) service a large number of consumers, and (iii) transfer data (i.e., titles) to the end user quickly, preferably in "real time". Further, the consensus prefers a system arranged as a centralized facility capable of communicating with remote stations (e.g., homes, offices, public gathering locations, etc.) via existing or next-generation communications media.
Particular on-going efforts related to the present invention include a system being developed by Broadband Technologies. General elements of the Broadband Technologies system, as understood, are illustrated in FIG. 15. As shown, a subscriber's remote location 151 is connected over a standard telecommunications network 152 to a central facility 153. The central facility 153 awaits service requests from its subscribers.
When a given subscriber wishes to view a selection (e.g., a movie), he or she places a telephone call to the central facility using a standard telephone 154. The call is routed via standard telephone switches 155 (e.g., EO and AT switches) over the telephone voice path of a standard telephone line 156 (e.g., 24-gauge twisted pair copper wire). The telephone call is directed to a Voice Response Unit (VRU) 157 located in the central facility. The VRU forwards the subscriber request to an on-site attendant 158, e.g., through a paper printout. The operator 158 reviews the request, then retrieves the requested selection from an in-house library 159. Finally, the operator 158 locates an available playback unit 170 in a playback battery 171 and loads and plays the selection accordingly.
The output signal of the playback unit 170 is supplied to an interface unit 172 coupled between the playback unit 170 and the VRU 157 in the central facility 153. The interface 172 compresses the signal received and forwards the compressed signal via the VRU 157 to the telephone voice path of the telephone line 156. From there, the signal is routed to the subscriber's telephone 154, where a further interface 173 retrieves the signal, decompresses it, and passes it to the subscriber's television set 174.
As such, the Broadband Technologies system succeeds in providing an adequate transfer of video data over existing switches and transmission lines. First, the signal received at the remote location 151 corresponds in quality approximately to that of a conventional slow-play VHS mode signal. Furthermore, this system, while not truly "interactive", does provide limited system responses to remotely transmitted user requests. However, the system suffers under a range of inefficiencies, limitations on size and flexibility, and limitations or interactiveness, discussed in greater detail below. Finally, the system requires direct linkage to the subscriber's telephone 154, which monopolizes the telephone line and requires electrical connection between the telephone and television.
An additional pilot system being developed, known as the AT&T Leesburg Project, overcomes at least some of the problems noted above. General elements of the Leesburg system, as understood, are illustrated in FIG. 16. As apparent from the figure, the Leesburg system is very similar to the Broadband Technologies system, except that the request and response signals are not routed via standard telephone lines. Instead, the request and the response transmission are routed between the remote location 161 and the central facility 163 via a fiber-optic cable system 162.
In operation, a subscriber request is initiated via a customized telephone or control unit 164 connected to a special cable converter box 165 installed at the remote location 161. The request is transmitted over the fiber system 162 to a Voice Response Unit (VRU) 166 located at the central facility 163.
The operations at the central facility are the same as those described above with respect to the Broadband Technologies system, as indicated by the use of like reference numbers. The output signal of the playback unit 170 is supplied to an interface unit 167 directly coupled to the fiber system 162. The special cable converter box 165 at the remote end retrieves the signal and passes it on to the subscriber's television 168.
Since the Leesburg system benefits from the larger data transmission capacity of fiber-optics over standard copper wire (approx. 150 Mbits/sec versus approx. 1.5 Mbits/sec), the resulting quality of the data signal is enhanced relative to that of the signal delivered by the Broadband Technologies system. Moreover, this system does not monopolize the subscriber's telephone line. However this system fails to overcome the other problems noted, namely inefficiency, limitations on size and flexibility, and limitations on interactiveness.
The problems inherent in these systems, mentioned briefly above, will now be described more particularly.
The first class of problems involves inefficiency. First, no system yet proposed is fully automated. The human involvement and interaction required renders such systems costly, fallacy-prone and sluggish in response time. Second, pronounced redundancy between subscribers and playback capacity is required. In other words, the system must dedicate one VCR per concurrent user per average title duration. Further, the system must stock multiple copies of each title in order to cover overlapping requests. Clearly, this redundancy adds tremendously to overall cost and complexity of the system. Moreover, the arrangement is very wasteful, given that certain selections (e.g., first-run movies) are extremely popular for a time and then drop dramatically in popularity.
The second class of problems involves limitations on size and flexibility of the overall system. More specifically, given the redundancies discussed above, any system designed in this manner is inherently limited in the number of subscribers that can be accommodated and in the number of selections (titles) that can be offered.
The third class of problems relates to interactiveness. In each of the systems described, the user merely requests and views the title selected. As designed, the systems are incapable of providing more versatile or elaborate options that would require greater interaction between the user and the system. Examples of possible options available from a more powerful system include obtaining information to assist the user in selecting a title, selecting and reviewing previews of titles, adjusting playback of titles (e.g., pause, fast-forward, etc.), selecting between original language and dubbed versions of titles, etc. Further, truly interactive services are foreclosed from the described systems. Such interactive services of interest to consumers include on-line database searching, networked remote-station video-game competitions, personalized home shopping, and the like.